Sumatra

Sumatra is the fifth largest island in the world and the third largest in Indonesia. Population is about 40 million. The island is divided in the Aceh, Riau, Jambi, Bengkulu and Lampung provinces, and North, South and West Sumatra. It borders the Indian Ocean to the west and Malaysia to the east, only separated from the Malay peninsula by the Malacca strait. Area is about 425.000 square kilometers. A volcanic chain of mountains, Bukit Barisan, stretches from the south to the northwest part of the island. There are not much lowland along the west coast so most of the people here live in the highlands. Highest mountain on the island is Gunung Kerinci with 3.805 m. There is about 90 volcanoes on Sumatra, of which 15 are still active. The volcanic ash here is mostly acid, and does not help to improve the farmland, unlike on Java and Bali. There are a few exceptions, like the area around Bukittinggi where the soil is very fertile. 

East part of Sumatra is clearly different from the west with a huge plain from south to north. Half of this is mostly swamps, and not very suitable for agriculture. An exception is the area around Medan, which today is the most densely populated area on Sumatra. Close to Medan is the huge Toba crater lake, which is also a big tourist attraction. The islands outside the west coast, like Nias and Mentawai, are geologically older than the Sumatra mainland.

Climate:

Equator crosses the center of the island, and the climate here is tropical. Average temperature is about 25 to 27 degrees Celsius, along the coast the day temperature almost never drops below 30 degrees. Fortunately for the tourist most of the attractions are located in the highlands, and the nights there can be rather cool. The best time to visit Sumatra is in the dry season between May and September. The wet season can vary a lot, usually with January as the wettest month.

Flora and fauna:

Large parts of the island are still covered by rain forest, and the wildlife is rich and diverse. Some of the animals living here are elephant, orangutan, tiger, tapir and leopard. Unfortunately some of the species are highly endangered, much due to the increased deforesting. Large areas are now made into national parks and reserves, and programs like the rehabilitation of illegally captured orangutan's give results. The most popular parks are Gunung Leuser to the north and Kerinci Seblat south of Padang. 

Sumatra is home to the worlds largest (and smelliest) flower; the Rafflesia. This only blooms about every 20 years and is said to smell like rotten flesh. Sumatra is one of a few places this can be found in the nature, it grows in small pockets all over the Barisan mountains, for example close to Bukittinggi.

People and Religion:

Sumatra have a population of about 40 million. Islam first came here and to the rest of South East Asia late in the 13th century, at first to the north east coast were one of the first cities that converted to Islam was Samudra. This name was later given to the entire island, Samudra means "ocean" in Sanskrit. This part of Sumatra became from the 16th century called the Sultanate of Aceh, an area today known for it's strong independence movement and maybe the region in Indonesia were Islam has the strongest position. Much of Sumatra's population today descends from Malay people, the largest ethnic groups are Acehnese, Batak, Minangkabau (see Bukittinggi), Gayo and some other, smaller indigenous groups. In the big cities there are also large groups of Chinese, Arabs and Indians.

Economy:

The large rivers flowing on east Sumatra are very important for interior transport of goods and people. Important goods produced on Sumatra are rice, maize, tea, coffee, coconuts, spices, timber, oil and bauxite. The Dutch first found oil here in 1883, which led to the founding of Royal Dutch Shell Company, today one of the largest oil companies in the world. The island is today producing about three quarters of Indonesia's crude oil, and here is also refineries that produce gasoline and plastic. Sumatra is called the backbone of Indonesia because of its large natural resources and what this means for the economy of the whole country.